He kicked her out almost immediately. Antonia had sobbed when she explained what had happened.
“Why not stick around and make him own up to his responsibilities?” Brooke had asked.
Antonia’s reply was that he’d said he would keep her in court and make her life hell. Something about the explanation didn’t ring true to Brooke.
Luca had suggested, privately, that perhaps the baby wasn’t his and the man knew it. And if that was the case, the child likely belonged to someone who didn’t have the bank account to pursue.
Not that Antonia owned up to any of that.
And none of it mattered. She had returned to San Diego in hopes of winning Luca back and being a mother to Franny.
When she realized that wasn’t going to happen, she felt desperate, and that desperation had made her do horrible things. Unforgiveable things. And now she was leaving.
“I know you won’t believe me, but I am sorry,” she said to Luca.
Luca didn’t accept her apology, or comment.
“Have a safe flight. And let Franny know you’re okay when you get there,” Brooke encouraged her.
Antonia knelt to Franny’s level. “I’m leaving because it is better for you that I go. But I will write you letters . . .”
“Don’t make promises you won’t keep,” Brooke said.
Antonia looked up at her, then back to Franny.
“I will write letters. And we can text and call. And maybe if you visit your nonna’s papa, you can visit me as well.”
Franny nodded.
Antonia opened her arms. “Can I have a hug?”
Franny moved into her mother’s arms, hugged her hard, and sniffled back the tears.
Antonia told Franny she loved her in Italian, and Franny did the same in return.
Standing tall, Antonia put her wide-rimmed sunglasses over her eyes and told them goodbye.
They watched her until she mixed into the crowd at the airport, dragging a single suitcase behind her.
Franny reached up and grasped Brooke’s and Luca’s hands in hers.
“You okay, sweetie?”
She sighed. “I want gelato.”
“Yes, me too,” Brooke said with too much enthusiasm.
Luca turned a sideways glance Brooke’s way. “You’ve been eating a lot of gelato these days. Is there something you need to tell me?”
She knew what he was getting at. “No.”
“Maybe Mama Brooke just likes ice cream,” Franny said.
Brooke did a double take.
“Mama Brooke, huh?” Luca asked.
“Yeah. Once you get married, I can just call you Mama. When you have a baby, it will be confusing to call you Brooke when my sister or brother calls you Mama.” Franny pulled them both toward the parking lot.
Brooke couldn’t help but smile. Franny had zero filter. It was one of the reasons she got along so well with Brooke’s father.
“Your dad and I don’t have to be married for you to call me Mama.”
Franny chewed on that for a minute. “Yeah, but then I call you Mama and people ask if you’re married to my papa and I say no and then it’s just weird.”
Brooke cringed.
“Yeah, that’s just weird,” Luca agreed.
“Then hurry up, Papa.”
Brooke was trying hard not to laugh.
They went straight from the airport to Santorini’s Gelatoria next door to D’Angelo’s.
Gio, Chloe, and Mari were hovering around, waiting to hear about Antonia’s departure and how Franny handled it.
Luca and Franny went inside to get the ice cream while Brooke talked to the family.
“She’s one resilient girl. Like with any good breakup, all she wanted was ice cream.”
“I’m glad Antonia’s gone,” Chloe said.
“Me too. Maybe they will have a decent adult relationship, but Antonia has the mothering skills of a rabbit.”
“Rabbits don’t mother?” Chloe asked.
“Not really. A useless fact I have in my head. They come by once a day to feed their babies for like two weeks and then they’re gone.”
Gio winced. “That’s awful.”
“Cara?”
Brooke turned to find Luca handing her an ice cream cone.
“Thank you.” She took a swipe with her tongue. “Good call, Franny.”
Luca handed Franny his cone. “Hold this a second.”
“Where did you learn about the bunnies?” Gio asked, dragging her attention away from Luca.
“I was looking for code words for my own mother.”
“Brooke, that’s terrible,” Mari said, laughing.
“I think she’s onto something here. We can call you-know-who Fluffy and we’ll all know who we’re talking about.”
Brooke laughed, saw Luca reach down to the ground.
“Did you drop some—”
She came to a full stop when she saw Luca on one knee, a box in his hand open with a diamond solitaire sitting in black velvet.
“Cara, amore mio . . .”
Brooke’s jaw dropped. They were in the center of the sidewalk, outside the restaurant on a busy summer day.
People all around them stopped and stared.
“I have never loved anyone the way I love you. You are my rock when I am weak. My sanity when the world around us is crashing in. You make me laugh and warm my heart. You’re a mother to my daughter, and a daughter to my mother. Please, my love . . . let me make you my wife. Marry me, Brooke.”
She started nodding before he finished talking.
The gelato slid from her fingers and hit the ground.
Cheers went up in the crowd that had gathered, and Luca stood.
He removed the ring from the box and slid it on her finger. “I love you,” she said only to him, right before he kissed her.
Clapping.
People were clapping.
Santorini’s voice sang over the cheers. “My gelato brings hearts together.”
Luca ended their kiss, looked her in the eye. “I love you.”
“Mama?”
Brooke looked down at Franny . . . ice cream dripping over her hands.
Franny looked back at her and said, “I love you, too.”
“Oh, baby.” She kissed Franny’s cheek.
Chloe took the gelato from Franny’s hands and tossed it in the trash.
“Santorini, a fresh one for Franny. Everyone else, champagne. We celebrate!” Mari announced.
The crowd dispersed as they walked inside.
Mari called out to the room that her son just got engaged and a round of champagne was on the house.
“Now I don’t have to move,” Gio told them.
“Move? No one is moving,” Mari said.
“Not anymore. Brooke moves in with Luca, I move upstairs. Now I can stay.”
Mari put both hands in the air. “When were you leaving? You weren’t going to tell your mama?”
Gio hugged his mother. “No, I was waiting for this guy to do this thing, and now I’m good.”
Chloe hugged Luca, then squealed when she hugged Brooke.
Franny ran inside with a fresh ice cream, Santorini at her side.
Staff came out from the kitchen to offer their congratulations.
EPILOGUE
Any excuse to eat, drink, and celebrate life.
Brooke had quickly learned that becoming a D’Angelo meant she’d be entertaining constantly, not that she minded.